


Fear Not This Night

by AnimalCops



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Full Moon, Werewolf, sixth year
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-13
Updated: 2018-05-13
Packaged: 2019-05-06 01:23:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,131
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14631147
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnimalCops/pseuds/AnimalCops
Summary: The full moon always made Remus worry, it always brought up thoughts and memories as he sat alone in the Shrieking Shack. The time he idled away, waiting for the nightmare to become reality, was time that weighed heavily on his mind. The shadows might be falling, but the stars always shine through in the end.





	Fear Not This Night

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was inspired by the 2018 Mclaine Diemer version of Guild Wars 2's "Fear Not This Night". Feedback is appreciated!
> 
> Nightmares come when shadows grow  
> Eyes close and heartbeats slow
> 
> Fear not this night  
> You will not go astray  
> Though shadows fall  
> Still the stars find their way

Remus stared up at the sky, the darkness was slowly coming in and the full moon was just rising, taking its time. He couldn't see any stars tonight. He sat on the floor of the shack’s bedroom, his legs crossed in front of him, as he gazed through the cracked glass and few boards that somewhat obscured his view. The sixth year Gryffindor has had much time to come to terms with his own condition, and he accepted that it was something he would deal with for all his life. But that never stopped the agonizing pain, or lessened the fear and anxiety that his curse brought him. 

He let out a shaky breath as his body jerked involuntarily. He still had a couple hours until the moon reached its peak and the change would overcome him. It had been a long while since he had been on his own for a moon, typically his friends would arrive shortly after he changed and leave before he changed back. He never wanted them to witness what he went through. He never had let them. Remus always made sure they would not see it. 

He looked down at his hands in his lap. If they saw his actual transformation, it might be too much. He imagined they might think it to be akin to their own graceful and painless Animagus transformations. He tried to keep the truth of his transformations far from his friends. 

Remus closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. He tried to keep himself calm as he felt another painful surge run through his body. He pulled his legs up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. Resting his chin on his knees, he stared out of the obstructed window. The blank, black sky gave him a chilling and uneasy feeling. His body gave a shudder. How he hated these nights. It was so cold in the Shack and soon he would have to shed his clothes completely before the transformation came. Remus had learned very early on that he ruined too many clothes by not stripping before a transformation. He couldn’t afford the amount of clothing he would shred to ruins through his life. He could handle the cold between the time he shed his clothes and the time he grew fur. 

He felt his heartbeat slow, and he breathed deeply, trying to focus his thoughts elsewhere. Were his friends on their way? 

Remus smiled to himself. He loved his friends very much. They always did anything they could in order to help him. They have sacrificed so much. They have performed illegal magic for him. They never cared what he was when they found out. Remus’ smile faded slightly. How were they so accepting when the rest of the Wizarding World only saw him as a ‘dark creature deserving only death’. Just as his father had told Fenrir Greyback. 

He trembled again, fear rippling through him at the thought of the man that cursed him with Lycanthropy. 

Fenrir Greyback was a walking, breathing, living nightmare. Remus never had the chance to face him again but stories spread and he kept suffering recurring nightmares. In his dreams, he saw the dark figure crawl into his room. He heard the crunch of bones that he was now so familiar with. He saw claws, fur, and gleaming eyes. He smelled the harsh red iron scent of blood. He heard his own voice, a child’s voice, screaming in agony. He felt the pain, felt the wolf’s jaws clamp down like a bear trap, sharp fangs piercing innocent flesh. The dreams were sharp and near-reality. 

The moonlight that streamed through the window made Remus’ pale skin glow slightly. He felt the itch it left in its wake. He could feel the tug on his heart, the moonlight calling to the wolf that he had learned to hide so well. His body jerked again, abruptly, and pain shot up and down his spine like electric shocks. He bit his lip and held back a whimper. 

He stood abruptly, joints popping and bones feeling fragile, and began to pace the length of the room. Thinking about Greyback set him on edge. The thought of the savage werewolf sent shivers down his spine and made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. The thought of the man that caused Remus' own curse made the old bite scar throb in sympathy. He stopped pacing and stood in the center of the moon, exactly where the moonlight fell in a broken rectangle on the floor. 

He looked out the window once more and frowned at the gigantic moon - the only light in the sky. Any moment now.

Careful of his aching body, Remus stripped out of his clothes. He collected them in a pile in his arms and moved to the side of the room where a beaten, blood-stained and quite tall wardrobe stood. Standing on his tip toes he could just reach the top. He placed the pile of clothes on the top of the wardrobe and then set his shoes on top of the pile. 

He crumpled to the floor, legs giving out beneath him, as the moon reached its apex. His nails raked down the front of the wardrobe and he whined low in his throat as he felt his bones shifting and snapping. His head tossed back and he let out a wild scream when he could feel his nails grow and fingers snap, his hands reforming into clawed paws. His spine lengthened to include his wolf's tail. Remus felt a disgusted shudder flood through him as his skin felt like it was bubbling when the fur poked its way through. He shook his head, newly growing jaws snapping, howls ripping from his throat as he could no longer form human noises. He could feel the overwhelming mix of fear from his human mind collide with the wolf's bloodlust. His human self took a back seat and he shuddered again, having no choice but to allow the wolf to take over.

His new body collapsed to the ground, panting and whining at the stress of the change. 

Closed lids opened to reveal startling golden eyes. Remus' own green seemed to be merely but a flicker in the distance. 

Moony shakily rose to all fours and shook himself, ruffling his newly grown fur. His head whipped to the side and his hackles rose. His lips pulled back in a snarl as he bared his teeth at the slowly opening door. But it was not a threat, or anything that meant harm. A large black dog barreled into the room and headbutted him in the side, knocking him over. 

It seemed the stars were out tonight after all.


End file.
